The Importance of Vacuuming

Many people don't realize how effective regular vacuuming can be.  First, what is regular vacuuming?  Every day in high traffic areas if possible but at least one or two times a week.  This helps remove soil, pet hair, dust, pollen etc...before they are ground into the fibers of the carpet.  This can improve the air quality in the room and the life of the carpet among other things.  Unfortunately if your vacuum is not working properly you will get poor results. 

A  few things to check on your vacuum. 

1.  The beater bar needs to be checked from time to time; if it is full of lint or animal hair it needs to be cleaned off. 

2. The belts will need to be replaced periodically. Each model will be different so refer to your owners manual for more information.

3. The bag and/or any filters will also need to be checked and changed periodically. 

If you're looking to replace your old vacuum check out the Dyson.  There's a link below...

 http://www.dyson.com/homepage.asp

Zach Reets - Carpet Cleaning Technician

A Successful Ethics CEC at Champion!

On Tuesday, March 17, we hosted another great CEC for agents and adjusters.  The morning course was entitled "Ethics...To Be or Not To Be!" and was taught by Brett Decker, CLU from The CE Depot.  (http://www.brettdecker.com/) This was the first time we had worked with Mr. Decker and we were very impressed.  He kept the course lively with pictures and real-life examples.  We look forward to working with him in the future and we think he feels the same way about us.  Here is an excerpt from a letter we received from him...

"Good to have seen you again. Also, very nice to have met so many of the “Champion” gang during my visit. Quite an impressive group of people, professional and friendly. Please convey this and my appreciation to each and every one of them for me. Thanks for the opportunity to deliver what turned out to be a successful Ethics class based on student evaluations. It’s always good when that happens for all of them and us together. They were a quality group of people and they made the session lively and interactive which is always good for everyone, as well.  I will look forward to instructing future CE classes, Ethics and others that you might want me to do for you and your people."

We will be hosting more CECs in the future.  Check out our calendar under the "Agent Area" of our website.  You can also check out pictures from our CECs and read the comments from our attendees.

http://www.championcsi.com/agent-portal.php

Summer Bishop - Marketing Support

Give Your Hardwood Floors a True Refresher!

Everyone loves the look of well maintained, beautiful hardwood floors.  Maintenance is the key word.  It's hard in today's fast paced world to have work done in the home.  Most of us only know traditional sand and finishing as the way to restore a floor.  With that being such a project, many have tried to refresh their floors themselves by using products that are simply mopped onto the floor.  Unfortunately, many of these people are very unsatisfied with the results, even feeling that the floor looks worse afterward.  The application is not easy and shows every imperfection in the way it was applied.  The sheen also dulls over a short time and is not the natural sheen that the floor was made to have.  Sometimes the floor starts to look hazy, have a white film, or the product starts flaking.

Click to read more ...

A Good Time Was Had by All...

Today we hosted a continuing education course for insurance agents and adjusters about wood floor drying.  We enjoyed having those ladies and gentlemen with us (as always) and it seemed that they had a good time, too.  Lunch from Cafe Pig was a real treat.  We're already looking forward to the next one, March 17, about Ethics. 

Today was an especially exciting day for us because the speaker was one of our very own, Jeremy Reets.  He shared a lot of valuable information about how the innovative Thermal Energy System (TES) he developed himself can be used (among other things) to save hardwood floors that would previously have been unsalvageable.  This saves time and money, is environmentally friendly, and spares homeowners a lot of stress and grief. 

Speaking isn't a new thing to Jeremy:  Every six weeks or so restorers from all over the US and beyond come to our facility for TES training.  We have a very unique "flood house" on site-- an actual house that gets flooded and dried over and over again.  One of the highlights of today's course was that the agents and adjusters got to flood the house and then see how TES is used to begin the restoration process.  Jeremy developed TES as part of his never-ending quest to find a better way to do things.  It's something I like to tease him about (I am his wife, after all) but I have to admit it's a pretty remarkable system!

Starri Reets - Event Coordinator

http://www.tesdryingsystem.com/

Fire Safety Season--Play it Safe!

 As we've been through a cold snap some may feel that they've got this auxiliary heating thing down pat. Well let's just take minute to cover some EXCELLENT reminders:

1.) Keep space heaters at least 3' from anything combustible.

Click to read more ...

Hands-On Wood Floor Drying for Water Damage Restoration CE Course# 34703

Today is our first hands on hardwood floor drying and restoration course in our new 1500 square foot flood house.  This is a house that we built on our premises just for training our employees, insurance professionals and other restoration contractors.  I am excited to make this week's presentation to a full class of 28 agents and adjusters from local agencies. 

Today hardwood flooring makes up 13% of all new flooring sales.  The ability to dry hardwood flooring effectively is one of the most important tasks that a restoration contractor needs to understand.    Yet, when these floors are affected by water damage they are almost always removed by restoration contractors.  We will demonstrate how Champion properly dries hardwood flooring saving our clients precious time and money.

This is a great opportunity for agents and adjusters to better understand how they can assist their clients when they suffer the effects of flooding and water damage by utilizing Champion's unique services .

Check the "Agent Area" on our web site to see when this and other Continuing Education courses will be offered again in the near future.

http://www.championcsi.com/agent-portal.php

 Jeremy Reets - C.E.O.

Education, Knowledge and Training

While growing up I was continually reminded of the importance of education and knowledge in my life. I recall such phrases as "Knowledge is Power" and "To get a good job you need a good education!". Most would agree that there is a definite correlation between success and education. 

At Champion Construction Systems we believe that education, knowledge and training should be the cornerstones on which to build a successful company. The many positive comments about our company made by our satisfied customers prove the wisdom of following this business plan. When you are part of  a company that provides emergency services and home restoration to home-owners it is imperative that each of our technicians receive the best training and continuing education available.

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The Key to Good Business

Customer Service is defined as "the provision of service to customers before, during and after a purchase.'  It is important that customer service be implied to your customers during their entire experience with your company.  This assures that they feel wanted, as opposed to needed, which can also help generate more business for you in the future.  If they feel they were well taken care of, they will pass on this information to others, which in turn can help build your reputation as a business.  Exceptional Service also helps prevent problems and issues that would potentially arise if the customer was not taken care of all the way through.  Overall, Customer Service is the key foundation to help build a successful, winning business!

Pamela Brown - Marketing Representative

Alphabet Soup

When you open our web site you might notice at the bottom there is an "alphabet soup" of letters:  "SCRT", "RIA", "NAHB", "IICRC", "DKI", "Mohawk".  Other than "Mohawk", what does that jumble of letters stand for?  These are organizations that Champion has affiliations with that ultimately benefit you as our client.  Let's focus on just three of these, "SCRT", RIA", and "IICRC".

 The first two are industry trade associations that we belong to.  In addition to keeping us abreast of the latest information and techniques in the industry by means of technical bulletins, conventions, and networking with fellow members, we agree to adhere to the highest standards and code of ethics.  Click on the links below each logo and read those codes of ethics.  By the way "SCRT" is the association that my wife and I managed for five years.

Click to read more ...

Science is Fun Again

Students from the Carolyn Barron Montessori School took a field trip to Champion.

Jeremy Reets led the children in a discussion on drying and evaporation. When asked how to clean up a spill one young girl said, “I would use a hair dryer.” Little did she know just how right she was. Jeremy explained how Champion uses similar technology to dry up large spills. The students were allowed to flood our flood house which is used for water damage training. Students enjoyed a hands on lesson and left with a new approach on evaporation.

 

Icela Reets - Emergency Response Program Coordinator